Powder coating is a widely known method of applying coatings to components during a manufacturing process. In the powder coating process, parts to be coated are suspended on a rack or other hanging system. Frequently the hanging system is a cable or chain conveyor system that moved the parts through the various stages of the coating process. Workers or automated systems place the parts to be coated onto rack or hanging system using hooks. These hooks are generally sized such that the part hangs below the conveyer an amount sufficient to prevent coatings from adhering to the conveyor itself. Once the parts are positioned on the conveyor system those parts are subjected to a static charge such that the parts become charged. A powdered coating material is then introduced to the part. Often this is performed by blowing the coating across the part. The charge produced on the part causes a certain amount of powdered coating material to become attracted to and stick to the part. The powder that doesn't stick to the part may be recycled for later use. The parts, now coated with a uniform layer of coating material are moved into an oven where heat is applied to melt the powdered coating material. This heat causes the material to melt and form a permanent coating on the part to be coated. The powder coating process has many advantages over a spray or dip coating application and as a result, the powder coating process continues to grow in popularity.
In addition to powder coating processes, hangers may also be used in “wet” coating processes—that is, coating methods that use solvents to suspend the coating materials during the application process. Common wet coating methods include spraying and dipping. As with powder coating, these methods may use hangers to suspend work pieces during the application of a coating material.
In many coating processes the coating material is unavoidably applied to the hanger that is used to hang the part to be coated on the conveyer or other system used to transport the coated parts. After repeated coatings, the hanger may be subject to a buildup of coating material that may make it difficult to remove the parts, negatively impact the part coating quality or may cause the hanger to become unusable. Known methods of removing this built-up coating from parts hangers include placing the hangers in an oven and heating them to a point at which the bond between the coating and the hanger fails and the coating can be easily removed (generally referred to as a “burn-off” process). Currently, this burn-off process is generally performed in a dedicated cleaning oven. Such an oven may not be economically feasible for an organization which performs a limited amount of coating. As a result, hangers must be gathered from the coating process and moved to the cleaning oven location. In addition, the hangers must be arranged such that they are evenly heated. Ideally such an arrangement allows for a uniform distribution of the hangers in the cleaning oven.
What is needed is a system and method for storage, transportation and cleaning of coated hangers. In an embodiment of the invention, a rack structure may be formed that permits coated hangers to be hung from the rack after use and transported to the location of the cleaning oven for coating. In such an embodiment, each rack structure may comprise a series of primarily horizontal rails upon which the coated hangers may be suspended. In embodiments of the invention, a second horizontal rail may be positioned such that it is parallel with the first rail and is arranged such that it may be positioned to form a space between the first and second rails sufficient to permit hangers to be hung from the first rail. In such an embodiment, the second horizontal rail may be repositioned such that it moves closer to the first rail and as a result, captures the hangers between the two rails. This capture may permit the rack structure to be moved to location of the cleaning oven with the hangers in place without the hangers falling off of the structure. Embodiments of the invention may comprise a plurality of such rails. Certain embodiments of the invention may also be configured to allow multiple racks to be positioned together for shipment from a first location to a cleaning location in order to provide a more stable and compact structure.
Further features and advantages of the devices and systems disclosed herein, as well as the structure and operation of various aspects of the present disclosure, are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying figures.